The ANC wants a state of national disaster to be declared over South Africa’s energy crisis, with the president coordinating an emergency program to “ensure that the energy crisis is properly addressed”.
The two-day national executive committee (NEC) lekgotla held ahead of Wednesday’s cabinet meeting – and the upcoming cabinet reshuffle – agreed that the country must “move in that direction” to speed up the time needed to resolve the power plant dilemma. face
Discussions about the need for such a move have been taking place in government and business circles since the middle of last year and have gained momentum as the crisis has worsened, with South Africa remaining in its fourth stage, at the time of writing.
The Lekgotla has discussed the emergency energy plan – and proposed that Eskom and other state-owned entities be moved from public companies to the minerals and energy ministry and other departments.
The decision will allow Eskom to speed up its normal procurement procedures which, if properly managed, can reduce the time the state electricity entity needs for maintenance and renovation.
In his closing speech, President Cyril Ramaphosa said there had been discussions about declaring a state of national disaster, as was done during the Covid-19 pandemic, and that there was “general agreement” that this was the step to take.
He said the meeting had agreed that the energy crisis was a threat to national security, the economy and the country’s sovereignty.
The NEC wants the presidency to “coordinate the whole process” to speed up the response to shorten the estimated 18 months to two years that Eskom believes will be needed to bring its fleet of power stations to a fully operational state.
Work has been done to analyze the legal framework for these measures and what measures can be taken in disaster situations to overcome “the challenges facing our nation”.
Ramaphosa said that, during consultations with the government, several role players from business to trade unions and traditional leaders have expressed the need for emergency situations and the use of extraordinary powers.
The Lekgotla believes that a coordinated response, similar to the government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, “will ensure that the energy crisis is properly addressed”.
The government and the ANC must respond to the crisis with clear and coordinated messaging about the country’s emergency energy plan and the measures it is taking to avoid “confusion” about what is being done to stop load shedding.
Social partners must be mobilized on the energy plan, which must be approached with “new impetus” and must take proposals from civil society, business and trade unions as they do, Ramaphosa said.
He said that the matter will be discussed in the lekgotla cabinet and will be given serious and urgent attention in the governance process.
“This is a matter that must be dealt with and resolved without delay,” Ramaphosa said.